Creating a real-life impact on lives across the UK, Thalamos is a startup using tech to improve access to vital mental health care. The London-based team has just raised €1 million.
There are far too many lives at risk due to issues with mental health care and the systems in place to provide it. Many of these issues stem from the fact that these systems rely on outdated paper forms. In addition to a lack of funding, this is another reason why a new approach is needed to improve the situation. This new approach should involve digitalization and creative solutions to help improve mental health care systems.
Thalamos digitized the Mental Health Act in order to fulfill its purpose as an impact-first startup. Recently, the startup received a seed round of $1 million backed by the Conduit Impact EIS Fund, which is managed by Ascension and supported by angels like Syndicate Room. Additionally, a private Seedrs crowdfunding round was held for investors.
Thalamos: Improving access to life-saving care
Cousins Arden and Ross Tomison founded Thalamos in 2018. Inspired by the experience of a close friend in urgent need of mental health treatment, they knew there had to be a better way. Consequently, many paper forms had to be filled out and approved before his care could begin— leaving him to wait too long while in crisis. With this inspiration, they decided to take action and create a safer, more efficient and kind process for vital treatment.
Their digital mental health care platform allows people to quickly and safely access treatment.
Arden Tomison, founder of the organization, observed that people in need of urgent mental health care should not have to wait. This is because completing the necessary legal processes for sectioning someone under the Mental Health Act can significantly delay treatment.
Arden stated that the current paper-based system for acute mental health care adds an unnecessary administrative burden to clinicians. This essentially reduces their capacity, which in turn makes it harder for patients to receive treatment and further strains existing services.
Thalamos’s digital system eliminates unnecessary delays and drastically reduces the risk of errors.
Ascension investment manager Hadley Diest praised the Thalamos tool for its groundbreaking digital workflow. This tool allows all stakeholders involved in patient care to work more smoothly and productively. This results in better patient outcomes and more efficient collaboration between regulators, the NHS and law enforcement agencies.
The Thalamos company is a great addition to the Conduit EIS Impact Fund’s portfolio. It’s a focus area for the fund, which means it’s considered a high-priority investment. The Ascension Foundation and Conduit Connect expect to provide strong support for Arden and his team as they grow Thalamos within acute mental health care and possibly beyond.
Mental health crisis
In the post-pandemic years, we are in a critical moment for mental health care and more and more people are finding themselves in need of treatment. In the UK, the number of people being sectioned under the Mental Health Act is continuing to rise, and it’s a common theme throughout Europe.
Thalamos already works with seven mental health care providers in the UK, giving over 40,000 practitioners access to the digital tools needed to speed up access to care for those in crisis. Using Thalamos instead of paper-based processes is reducing the risk of error by up to 89%.
In addition, the team works closely with lived-experience professionals to ensure a responsible approach to innovation; one which also seeks to reduce inequalities as part of the process.
Arden: “At Thalamos, we’re working closely with mental health care providers across England to deliver a fully digitised solution which makes access to acute care swifter, simpler and safer. This is helping practitioners speed up the arrangement of patient admission, treatment and transfer, while increasing data security and care quality. We’re so grateful to our amazing group of investors for supporting us to expand our work to optimise the care accessed and received by a growing number of mental health care patients.”
This investment will support the Thalamos team to make a tangible difference in the lives of many as they will be able to expand the team and strengthen the product. This will mean more mental health care providers can be supported to help patients, clinicians and systems.
